Inflexible
by ENT Time
Summary: A companion piece to "Resignation", this time Eric's point of view.  May be 2 or 3 chapters eventually.  Starts with Eric's thoughts at the restaurant in the finale.
1. Chapter 1

He did a double take when he noticed tears brimming in Tami's eyes. The next thing he knew, she was gone from the table and headed for the front door of the restaurant. Even though they were not exactly seeing eye-to-eye these days, there was nothing he hated more than to see her hurting. Eric waited a beat, placed his napkin on the table and then followed her to the exit. He found her in tears just outside the door. It was painful for him to see Tami this upset, it always made him feel like someone had punched him in the gut – it didn't matter what had caused her unhappiness, his physical reaction was always the same.

For the first time in weeks, he took her in his arms and held her, hoping to comfort her and make himself feel useful. Eric figured all this engagement business had finally pushed her to her breaking point. The whole thing wasn't sitting well with him, either; Julie and Matt were too young to get married. They were just kids! If there was anything he'd learned after all these years, it was that marriage was _not_ easy. Hell, how many years had he and Tami been together and they _still_ had bumps in the road. Eric knew Tami must be just as worried as he was that the kids were jumping in too early.

After standing in silence for a few minutes, Tami finally spoke, and to his surprise, her words had nothing to do with Julie and Matt:

"It's my turn, Babe."

So _that's _what this was all about? She was still talking about the job in Philadelphia. She spoke about how they loved each other and had both compromised for his job, "and now, it's time to talk about doing that for my job," she finished. At that, Eric dropped his arms and took a step away from Tami. He was not prepared to have another argument on this subject tonight. He thought he was comforting his wife over their daughter making a huge mistake, or at the very least, reaching another milestone that neither he nor Tami were ready for, but Tami was still on the same topic they had been for weeks: Braemore College.

He was so tired of this discussion. Why did Tami have to want this job so badly? Why did it have to be in Philadelphia? Why couldn't they both be happy to stay here in Dillon? He hated disappointing her, but he was really struggling to envision a life on the East Coast. Frankly, it scared him; there were a lot of instances over the years where Tami had ultimately called the shots, but there had yet to be a situation where Eric's career was not at the forefront of any relocation decisions.

He'd gotten pretty comfortable here in Dillon. When he turned down the job offer from Shane State several weeks ago, he'd come to the realization that he wanted to continue to shape the Lions, these young men that he had watched transform from kids with little or no hope for a future, into champions, (whether they won State this weekend or not) before his very eyes. As amazing as it was to take the Dillon Panthers to State twice, he had never felt as fulfilled as he had in his time with the East Dillon Lions. In a way, he had inherited the Panthers; they were destined for greatness before he took over as head coach. But the Lions, he had built that team from scratch, literally. Eric wasn't normally one for self-congratulating, but he was prouder of the Lions accomplishments than anything he'd ever done in his career. Even though the school board had taken away his chance to continue on with the Lions as he knew them,( with the inevitable merger of East and West,) the thought of walking away from those kids, (namely Vince,) when he knew there was so much more he could teach them, both on the field and off, just felt _wrong_. The 5-year contract that he was being offered was something else he couldn't ignore. He'd longed for this kind of stability his whole career, and now that it'd finally been presented to him, he was supposed to walk away? Who knew what kind of contract he'd find up in Philadelphia? Who knew what kind of position would even be available to him? All of the uncertainty made him very uncomfortable.

Where Eric was from, a man supported his family; he made sure there was food on the table. If Tami were to take this job and move them all to Philadelphia, he was afraid that wouldn't be his role anymore. Now, his salary had fluctuated while they lived in Dillon, and there was even a time while Tami was principle at West Dillon that she was bringing in more than he was. But even though it bothered him some, he still had stature in the community as a football coach that intangibly supplemented his income. Eric didn't think he'd be awarded the same benefit on the East Coast.

Eric would love nothing more than to make Tami happy. In fact, he spent most of his life with that as his main priority. He thought he'd done a pretty good job of it, too, but now he was doubting himself. He thought she'd been in the same place he was, but the discussions over the last couple of weeks had led him to believe that Tami felt she had made a lot more sacrifices than he had over the years, to the point where she was sick of it. Eric was no fool; he knew Tami wasn't unhappy in their relationship as a whole. They loved each other fully and completely, and while they'd had ups and downs over the years, he'd never been truly unhappy, either. But the thought of taking her for granted - either her perceiving him to be, or him actually (unknowingly) doing so, crushed him. He didn't know how he would have survived the last twenty-some years without Tami. She was always there to pick/build him up when he was at his lowest point. He leaned on her in more ways that he could count, and she was practically as responsible for his successes (career or otherwise) as he was. He would hate to think she didn't know how much he appreciated her.

Tami had asked him a question, and after waiting for a response that never came, she sighed in frustration, "You just can't…" and with that, she wiped her tears, composed herself and turned back towards the doors as she said, "Let's just go back inside. Come on." It never failed to amaze Eric how quickly she could put on a smile and cover her true emotions (to strangers, at least,) even at her lowest. He, however, felt frozen in place, patting the front pockets on his jeans. He wished he could turn after her, grab her by the shoulders and give her everything she wanted in a few short words (something like, "OK, let's do it,") but he was not in that place. He just could not reconcile giving up everything he knew here in Texas with happiness in Pennsylvania. So instead, he followed Tami's path back to their table and ate the rest of his dinner in silence; knowing that this fight could not go on forever. Someone was going to have to give, and it was going to have to be soon.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: I deeply apologize for the long delay between chapters. I was quite happy with the 1****st**** chapter and began wondering if it was really necessary to continue as I had originally intended. I have been spending most of my free time reading everyone else's wonderful stories on this site, that I hadn't had the drive to do my own writing in a while. Today I received a gentle "nudge" (thanks Surlycoach!) and thought I might be in just the right mindset to carry on. Anyway, enough of my blabbering, here's chapter two – Enjoy!**

Some time after returning from dinner, Eric sat on the bed with an open magazine, reading the same paragraph over and over again. His thoughts were elsewhere, so finally he gave up and ventured out to the living room. He peeked around the corner of the wall to see his wife curled up in the recliner, facing the lit Christmas tree. The soft lights made her look as beautiful as ever, even in her sweats.

Eric wasn't sure how to approach Tami. He knew she was still hurting, and probably more than a little angry with him, and he was a nervous about "poking the bear". The tension between them was more than he could handle – he _needed_ to talk to her. He grabbed a candy cane from the small tree on the counter and headed for the couch. Tami glanced in his direction, but made no indication that she had any intention of conversing with him. Eric's first statement didn't seem to soften her any, but then, like she had on so many other occasions over the years, Tami shocked the hell out of him. He abruptly stopped absent-mindedly spinning the candy cane in his hands when she told him she'd decided to turn down the job offer from Braemore. Just like that – with no warning. He listened as she briefly explained that she was conceding because she was never going to win the fight. Eric didn't even know where to begin, so he settled on "A'right".

While it may have had the results he'd hoped for – being able to stay in Dillon, not having to pick up and move across the country, or having to quit his job and leave behind his friends and family – this resolution did not make him happy, satisfied, or even relieved. He just felt bad. He could see the sadness in his wife's eyes, hear it in her voice – she was disappointed, and he was the cause. How did he have this generous, loving, amazing woman for a wife, who would give up on her own professional dreams to satisfy his needs, and yet he could not make the same sacrifices for her? Before Eric had fully succumbed to his feelings of guilt, he was interrupted by the arrival of their eldest daughter. Suddenly careers and locales and the struggles of a marriage were pushed aside and the equally difficult challenges of parenthood were thrust into the spotlight.

To say the last few weeks had been stressful would be a gross understatement. The Lions' playoff run would have been enough pressure for any one man to take, but Eric felt like that was the least of his worries these days (the team was doing great and stood a good chance of winning State over the weekend). But in the midst of the post-season games, the school board had decided to dissolve the Lions football program the following year, Tami had been offered an out-of-state career opportunity, and now his 18-year old daughter was engaged to marry her 19-year old boyfriend. It seemed that it was one crisis after another, and Eric didn't know how his heart had handled all of this stress; he figured his blood pressure must off the charts!

A fleeting thought occurred to him that perhaps if any of these challenges has arisen on their own, without the distractions of the others, he may have been able to navigate a much smoother course towards a satisfying resolution, but as it were, Eric felt like he was spread too thin, and not resolving any of the issues as he might have hoped. When Matt had come to his office and spilled that he and Julie were engaged (whether Eric liked it or not), Eric thought his head might explode. As far as he was concerned, the kids were far too young (even if he and Tami had only been a few years older when they had married) to take a big jump like marriage. Maybe it wasn't the age that bothered him as much as the maturity level. Though he'd never admit it to Matt, Eric knew the boy could (and had!) handle(d) just about anything life might throw at him. Julie on the other hand; sweet, dear, Julie, had made some terrible life decisions over the past few months – decisions that had disappointed him as a father more than he thought possible, and left him wondering how he had done so very wrong by her. While she seemed to have headed back in a positive direction over the past few weeks, his wounds were still fresh, and he found it extremely difficult to trust that she was making a smart, well-thought-out choice in this instance.

Beyond Eric's fear that his daughter may have made another poor decision, he was hesitant to accept the engagement because deep down, he didn't want Julie to be ready for this milestone just yet. He still wanted her to be his "little girl", and even though it was increasingly apparent that she hadn't been wide-eyed and innocent in quite some time, acknowledging her as a grown woman who would have children of her own in the not-too-far-off-future was downright terrifying. When had his little Monkey Noodle in pigtails turned into this beautiful, smart, strong, stubborn, flawed woman that sat in front of him?

He listened in silence as Julie argued her case for marrying Matt and Tami assured her that all they wanted was for Julie to be happy. He found himself nodding in agreement, because that was really all it came down to: his family's happiness. Eric and Tami could try to protect their daughters all they wanted, but they knew all along that there would come a day when they had to let her go and hope that everything they had taught and instilled in her had stuck and that she would go on and prosper. It seemed that for Julie, today was that day.

Eric decided it was time to make his exit and left the ladies to their mother-daughter talk. He bid them good night and headed for the bedroom. Even though the two conflicts that had been causing him the most anxiety in recent days had come to resolutions of sort that evening, he did not have a restful sleep. He was haunted by his acknowledgement from earlier in the evening: his family's happiness was most important. His daughters may be happy now, but what about his wife? He knew that Tami would stand by her word and sacrifice Braemore for him. It may ease the tension between them in the short term, but would there be lingering resentment? Eric couldn't help but wonder if this problem was not as resolved as they thought it was…


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Once again, sorry for the long delay between updates. Hopefully 2 new (albeit shorter) chapters will make up for it ;)**

Eric hadn't asked many questions regarding the details of Tami's job offer. Between the speed at which the whole situation had come about, the shock of Tami actually wanting to move cross-country to pursue it, and his own stubborn refusal to seriously consider the upheaval, it hadn't really occurred to him to ask about what exactly the job entailed, what her salary would be, etc. So as he stood in the kitchen reading over the package she had received from Braemore, as Buddy Garrity blathered on in his ear, he was surprised to feel the sense of pride that began to bubble in his gut. This was _his_ wife who these people were gushing over with compliments, it was _his_ wife who they were practically begging to work for them and implement her "innovative ideas". Even though he wasn't surprised that Tami had impressed everyone at Braemore (there was no one that she impressed more on a daily basis than him,) he was always happy when outsiders recognized what an amazing woman she truly was.

Eric began to feel the familiar weight of the situation bear down on his shoulders. As he told Tami that Buddy wanted him to sign the contract for the Super Team before the Lions left for State, he once again saw a pained look wash across her face. Was it regret? Resentment? A combination of those and other emotions? He wasn't sure, but he knew he didn't like it. He stood and pondered the decision once more as Tami walked down the hallway to wake Gracie Belle. Tami may have thrown in the towel last night, but it still wasn't sitting right with Eric. He knew neither result was going to leave everyone blissfully happy, but he couldn't help but feel that _no one_ would be happy if he let her turn down this offer. With a sigh, he headed back towards the bedroom to ready himself for the day.

* * *

><p>If Eric had to pick the exact moment that he made his final decision to agree to move to Philadelphia in pursuit of Tami's professional dreams, he would probably say it was when Jess told him that being a part of the Lions was the greatest experience of her life. He realized in that moment that it was the best professional experience of <em>his<em> life, and he knew that coaching the Super Team wasn't going to give him the same satisfaction as he received from building a team from nothing. Eric didn't need to set records for the most State championships, and he didn't need all the booster money in the world. He had been more fulfilled professionally these last two season than he had any other year. If he was fortunate enough to be blessed in this regard, how could he justify denying Tami the opportunity to reach the same level of professional achievement? Lord knows she deserved the chance after all of the sacrifices she had made throughout the course of _his_ career. She was right: it was _her _turn. All of a sudden it seemed fitting that the end of his time coaching in Texas should coincide with the dissolution of the Lions.

After officially declining the contract to coach the Super Team, Eric raced to the mall where he hoped he would be able to catch Tami and Gracie. He needed to talk to Tami now and set things straight; this was something that couldn't wait to be discussed after the game. He was relieved to find them both in the line for Santa Clause – the first place he looked – he would have the time to tell his wife what he'd decided. Seeing the look of pure love and adoration on Tami's face when he asked her to take him to Philadelphia with her was something he had missed over the past weeks. When she kissed him with everything she had, he knew he had made the right choice; he was just sorry it had taken him so long to realize what was right.

Eric was disappointed to have to cut his and Tami's reconciliation short, but he had a bus to catch. He would have to make it up to her later – all of it. He kissed the girls good bye and took off as quickly as he had come, but left with a much lighter heart knowing that he and Tami were finally in a good place again, just as they should be.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: This chapter was inspired by Molarity1983 who had expressed interest in seeing Eric's real apology to Tami. The feeling was that there would be a more formal apology off-screen than what was shown at the mall. Hopefully this is what you had in mind. **

**I would also just like to thank those of you who took the time to review, you were all very kind and I am very appreciative of the support. I've been a long time reader, but never dreamed that I would write anything of my own. Guess you never know when inspiration will strike… hopefully it will again ;)**

Eric and Tami headed back to their hotel room while the post-game celebrations were still in full swing. They had put in a couple of hours at the after party, but it had already been a long day and the rest of crowd didn't look like they'd be turning in any time soon. When they finally entered the room, Eric tossed his hat and the key card on the bedside table and Tami wrapped her arms around his shoulder. "I'm so proud of you, Babe. That was an amazing game."

Eric gave her a quick kiss and changed the subject as he sat them both on the side of the bed, "Listen, I want to apologize for the way I behaved over the past couple weeks. " Tami allowed a slight look of surprise to cross her face at the unexpected change of topic.

Eric continued, "I realize how selfish I've been and I want you to know that I am truly sorry if I made you feel like your career is less important than mine. I want you to be happy and fulfilled, and I know that you've made a number of sacrifices for me, and my career, and this family. I don't ever want you to think that I don't appreciate all that you've done."

Tami started, "Thank you…" but was cut off. The couple of celebratory scotches Buddy had poured Eric seemed to have loosened his lips more than usual, "And you're right, it is your turn. I've had mine and I've had some success, and I was able to do that because you've stood by me and held me up when I needed it. Now it's my turn to do that for you. I _want_ to do that for you. I want you to know how much I appreciate everything you've given me all these years by giving it back to you."

Tami finally got a chance to break in, "It means a lot to me that you recognize how important this opportunity is to me now, Hon. But you're right, I thought you were being a bit selfish, and I was hurt by how you initially handled the situation. I felt like maybe you _were_ taking me a little bit for granted. You know how much I love you, and I would walk to the ends of the earth for you, and I was upset that it didn't seem like you were willing to do the same for me."

She continued, "But it hasn't been one-sided all these years, either, Babe. You've given me a lot, too," she put her hand on his knee. "I had the opportunity to stay home with Julie while she grew up, which was what I wanted at the time. Then, when I wanted to work after Gracie was born, but thought I wouldn't be able to do it all, you were the one that convinced me to stick it out. And even though you might irritate me or frustrate me once in a while," she said with a sly grin, "I know how lucky I am to have a husband like you, Eric Taylor. You are a good man," she finished.

Eric wasn't done just yet; he had something else to get off his chest, "I want you to know how proud I am of you. You went up there to that school and just gave 'em hell. Heck, they gave you a promotion before you were even on the payroll!" He said with a wink, referencing the fact that she interviewed for the Assistant Dean of Admissions but was offered the position of Dean, making Tami laugh. He looked directly into her eyes, "You are amazing and brilliant and beautiful and I love you. Congratulations, Babe. You deserve this."

"Thank you – I appreciate that, Hon. Thank you for agreeing to do this. I think you'll like Philadelphia." "Well," he responded, "I've heard their cheese steak is pretty darn good."

Tami put a hand on his cheek as she leaned in to kiss him. "God, I've missed you." "I've missed you, too. More than you know," he replied. Tami leaned her head on his shoulder and draped her arms around his neck for a few moments before Eric broke the silence, "So…you ever slept with a two-time State Champion before?" Tami smiled, "No, but I happen to know a Dean of Admissions that would love to give it a whirl!" She giggled as he grabbed her and rolled her to the middle of the bed saying, "A whirl, huh? A whirl? I'll give you a whirl a'right…"


End file.
